Hair shedding after laser hair removal explained (2024)

FAQs

Hair shedding after laser hair removal explained? ›

When the laser targets the hair follicle, it damages the root of the hair. This damage signals to the body that the hair is no longer needed and will eventually be shed. In most cases, this occurs 1 to 3 weeks after your LHR treatment, and it sometimes looks like blackheads or stubble.

The energy from the laser also absorbs the melanin in the hair. However, the hairs must be in the active phase for the laser treatment to work. Laser hair removal regrowth is usually down to hairs that were in the catagen or dormant phase at the time of the treatment.

If you tweeze out hairs, you are disrupting its growth phase, canceling out the treatment you just received to remove it. It can also cause future treatments to be less effective. It is recommended to leave the treated area alone. A few weeks after treatment, the dead hairs will shed and fall out naturally.

Tips to Encourage Faster Shedding

Moisturising the Skin: Proper hydration of the skin can ease the shedding of hair. Opt for hypoallergenic and fragrance-free moisturisers that soothe without causing irritation. Avoiding Sun Exposure: The treated areas are particularly sensitive to UV rays post-laser.

You can expect a 10% to 25% reduction in hair after the first treatment.

When the laser targets the hair follicle, it damages the root of the hair. This damage signals to the body that the hair is no longer needed and will eventually be shed. In most cases, this occurs 1 to 3 weeks after your LHR treatment, and it sometimes looks like blackheads or stubble.

If you notice hair not shedding a couple of weeks after your treatment, it's important not to forcefully remove it by waxing or plucking. This could disrupt the natural hair growth cycle, which could affect the success of future treatments. The best course of action is to consult with your laser hair removal expert.

Up to a few weeks after treatment, your skin will develop stubble or blackheads as a part of the shedding process that happens from hairs that were partially grown at the time of the procedure. Exfoliation during this period aids the shedding and diminishes the blackhead or stubble appearance.

While you shouldn't be able to pull hair out forcefully, you're free to cut or scrub the hair in order to speed up the shed process. Rub the treatment area with a circular motion with a loofah or gentle washcloth for removing dead hair.

You cannot pluck, wax, tweeze, or thread the hair in your treated area. Doing any of these would mean removing the roots of the hair. These roots are important because the laser targets them in the process. The treatment will try to deactivate these hair follicles by cutting their blood supply and weakening them.

How long after laser do hairs fall out? ›

Hairs do not fall out immediately, but you will shed them over a period of days to weeks. This may look like continued hair growth. The repeated treatments are usually necessary because hair growth and loss naturally occur in a cycle, and laser treatment works best with hair follicles in the new-growth stage.

5-19 Days Post-1st Treatment

Clients can expect to see hair-thinning and patchiness; some areas may even appear completely hair-free.

One of the top reasons why Laser hair removal doesn't work boils down to hormones. Yes, believe it or not hormonal conditions can lead to ineffective hair removal. Our hormones encourage hair growth with the most common one being testosterone.

No, it is not advisable to pull out dead hair strands after laser hair removal treatments. It is best advised to wait out for a few days to even begin with shaving.

Immediately after the procedure the treated area might appear red and swollen. This is a normal response and usually subsides within a few hours. 7-14 days after the procedure the hairs will begin to fall out. Now, this doesn't mean the hair won't ever return.

A few days following your laser hair removal treatment, you will notice what appears like new hair growth in the areas that have been treated. Amazingly, this is a sign that the treatment is working! Keep in mind that not all the hair removed by this procedure was above the skin.

Up to a few weeks after treatment, your skin will develop stubble or blackheads as a part of the shedding process that happens from hairs that were partially grown at the time of the procedure. Exfoliation during this period aids the shedding and diminishes the blackhead or stubble appearance.

If you saw a less than stellar result on your last treatments it could have been due to not being in the hair growth stage in the cycle during time of procedure. Hormonal imbalance while undergoing laser treatments can stimulate increased hair regrowth.

This means that some hairs may not be affected by the laser during the initial treatment, and may continue to grow as normal. Additionally, new hair follicles may become active after the initial treatment, leading to the appearance of new hair growth.

However, even though laser treatments damage hair follicles, they're not destroyed completely. Over time, the treated follicles may recover from the initial damage and grow hair again. It's a tall order to eliminate every hair follicle in a given area. Therefore, you may notice a tiny amount of hair regrowth.